Wars of the Roses

1 8.8

A series of civil wars in England between the York and Lancaster families for the throne

proper noun

: Guerras de las Rosas

The Wars of the Roses were a series of conflicts between two noble families in England.

Examples

The Wars of the Roses ended with Henry VII becoming king.
The Wars of the Roses dramatically shaped the course of English history.
Many novels and films have depicted the intrigue of the Wars of the Roses.
The Wars of the Roses were a significant period in English history.
Many historians study the Wars of the Roses for their impact on the monarchy.
The history books detail the events of the Wars of the Roses and their effects on the throne.
During the Wars of the Roses, the struggle for power led to significant changes in English governance.

Synonyms

War of the Roses

vsWars of the Roses

2 7.5

A series of civil wars in England between Lancaster and York for the throne in the 1400s

uses a plural name instead of the singular naming form

Surface Forms

Wars of the Roses main

Morphology

war + of + the + Roses

The phrase literally combines 'wars' with 'Roses', so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words will understand it refers to conflicts associated with or named after 'Roses'. However, the full historical sense — a specific series of 15th-century English civil wars between the houses of York and Lancaster — is culturally specific and not recoverable from the words alone, so prior historical knowledge is required.

Etymology

Wars of the Roses gets its name from the symbols used by the two royal families. One popular story says people who backed the House of York wore a white rose and those who backed the House of Lancaster wore a red rose, so the long fight for the throne became known as the 'Wars of the Roses'.